2012 Retreat

The Jane’s Stories Press Foundation 2011 Retreat received great reviews from our attendees, all of whom said they would recommend it. This year, JSPF has been laboring with love over Jane’s Stories IV: Bridges and Borders which will launch in Chicago at Women & Children First Bookstore on Friday, October 5, 2012 from 7:00 – 8:30 pm. So, not only have we changed the retreat venue, we’ve made some changes in the agenda. As requested our retreat will offer more opportunities for attendees to write and read their work.

Jane Stories Press Foundation invites you to our 2012 Retreat at Mt. Everest Restaurant, 630 Church St, Evanston, IL 60201, (see website for map and directions) from 9:00 followed by lunch upstairs. Registration $40 (member discount applies!) plus lunch on your own. There will be time to write. So bring any object that relates to your work life and join the fun!

Mt. Everest Restaurant

Come for the friendship, the workshopsF, and the writing. Here are some of the things you’ll miss if you don’t join us!

Writing Exercise: The Only Thing You Might Break is a Pencil Tip

Join Jane’s Stories President Shobha Sharma for some morning work to loosen up your writing muscles and provide some fertile ground for the subsequent workshops. She will help you use the object you’ve brought to focus on a topic, images, and metaphors that will help you achieve a workable piece.

Becoming Your Iconic Self

Writer, teacher, and mentor-extraordinaire Glenda Bailey Mershon will present “Becoming Your Iconic Self.” In this workshop, we will return to your work in the beginning exercise and discuss how it represents the images, themes, and motifs you want to project in your writing (or perhaps a new direction!), how you might develop that piece further, and tools that will help editors find you and your work irresistible. This is your chance to explore where you are as a writer and begin an outline of the next steps to reach your goals, as well as a list of targeted markets. Practical tips from cover letters to web presence will be examined through examples and handouts. Lots of useful advice here!

Raised in Southern Appalachia, Glenda has been living in St. Augustine for many years. Living being the operative word: She’s eloquent voice for feminism and all forms of civil rights.

“I come from the mountains, from a textile mill-working family. My mother and her mother could weave a knot that was barely visible, but held under great stress. I’ve tried to apply their skill with threads to words. Here is my wider world view. Thanks be to all the ancestors who brought me here.” –Glenda Bailey Mershon (from her blog The Weaver’s Knot.)

How (& Why) To Publish A Chapbook: Not Just For Poetry

Linda Mowry, teacher, author and former Jane board member, will draw on her experiences in preparing, publishing, and marketing chapbooks to ease you into the chilly waters of publishing. We’ll cover themes, editing, practical and aesthetic aspects of production, and finding your market. You’ll learn all you need to plunge into publishing with this time-honored tool.Linda and her husband followed a long-time dream by moving from suburban Chicago to rural northeast Indiana a few years ago. They share their acreage with three charming chickens and abundant wildlife, and grow sumptuous vegetables while Linda mentors young writers.

And MUCH MUCH MORE! Hope to see you there AND DON’T FORGET YOUR OBJECT.